


Step by Step

by Ana Dragneel (Ana_dragneel_chan)



Series: FT shipping weeks [1]
Category: Fairy Tail
Genre: F/M, NaLu Week 2016, Nalu Week
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-01
Updated: 2016-08-08
Packaged: 2018-07-19 11:39:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 5,420
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7359733
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ana_dragneel_chan/pseuds/Ana%20Dragneel
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Step by step a relationship is built.<br/>Step by step the duo walks, event by event.<br/>Until one day they reach the final destination of their long summer adventure.</p><p>[Nalu week 2016]</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Longing

**Author's Note:**

> Funny fact about this story chapter: it was originally an AU, but I changed my mind while writing.  
> Anyway, I hope you enjoy it!

**His most precious treasure**

 

_Once upon a time, there was a noble girl who craved company. The girl had beautiful blonde hair and brown eyes and stories about her beauty were told through the kingdom, as she was hardly seen because of her overprotective father._

_And there was also a mighty beast, feared by many, who lived in the woods. A fire dragon with scales the color of blood and piercing green eyes. Eyes so ferocious that stories said that if you looked for even an instant into the beast eyes, you would die very soon._

_One day, the noble girl was passing through the forest path when she heard a whimper of pain. Without thinking much and worried about the source of the noise, she got out of her carriage and followed the whimper._

_When she found the source, she was stunned for a moment. There in the middle of the clearing was the feared dragon and he was badly hurt. The girl approached the dragon and showed him she meant no harm. When he finally acknowledged her, she started working on his wounds, cleaning them and nursing him the best as she could._

_After that day, the girl came back often, until the dragon was fully healed. It became a common occurrence to see the dragon guarding his benefactor, even from a distance. It didn't take long for them to become friends, even if the dragon couldn't talk in the same language as the girl._

_And soon rumors started spreading that the noble girl had tamed a dragon, and not any dragon, but the fire beast nicknamed Salamander. The rumors spread far, until they reached a blooming empire in the west and caught the interest of the emperor himself. The emperor was a serious young man and the story intrigued him. He called his wisest adviser and made preparations to visit the girl's family state._

_The girl's father was really pleased in receiving the visit of the emperor. The girl was beautiful and was in the marring age, and the emperor was yet to marry and get himself an empress. So he gave the duo some space and let them do whatever they wanted._

_To the girl's surprise, the emperor was interested in knowing more about the whole dragon story, so she took him to the dragon. The so called dragon was stunned and a bit uncomfortable when he saw the emperor, as if they already knew each other. The girl ended up leaving the two of them alone to talk and the duo talked for a long time. The sun was starting to set when the emperor came to the girl and they went back to the residence._

_Some time went by after the emperor's visit. Everything seemed to be normal, until one day the dragon went missing. The girl waited and waited, but her dragon friend never came back. The girl's feelings were in shambles. She missed the dragon way too much and longed to see and be with him again. It also didn't help that her father kept pressuring her to choose a husband soon, something she didn't want to do._

_At the same time, things were hectic in the empire. Rumors that a dragon had been seen were spreading, but good news about the royals made them fall into oblivion. The emperor had chosen an empress and the prince who had disappeared for years had finally come back home._

_Once the prince got used to his new situation, he asked his brother to help him. There was this girl he loved and longed to be with, but he needed to negotiate with her father to be able to see her. After all, even though he was a prince, he had become human again for only a short period of time._

_And the emperor contacted the noble girl's family, saying he wanted to discuss some topics with them and that he wished to negotiate in their state. The prince and the emperor arrived at the state, and while the girl's father and the emperor talked, the prince got to spend some time with the girl._

_The girl was reluctant in spending time with the prince. She had lost count of how many suitors she had had to spend time with, even when she showed she wasn't interested in them. But the prince wasn't like the other suitors. He actually cared about her opinions and feelings and made it clear that he didn't see her as just a pretty face._

_Little by little, the girl started to care for the prince the way she had once cared for the dragon. And the prince, who was already in love with her, fell even deeper in love with her. But she felt guilty, as if she was betraying the dragon who did so much for her._

_The prince could see the girl's struggle and the secret was a burden that was becoming way too heavy for him, so he decided to tell her everything. They went to the same clearing where they once met for the first time and he told her everything, from how he was turned into a dragon to how he was able to become human again._

_The girl was paralyzed, but it didn't take long for tears of happiness to start falling from her eyes. They hugged each other and the prince opened a bright smile, soon getting on his knees and asking the girl if she wanted to marry him._

"And what happened after, Mama?" Asked the little girl sitting on the blonde woman's lap.

"They got married, had a couple of kids and the dragon prince lived happily ever after with his most precious treasure, that was the girl, his wife." Answered a third voice that belonged to a man.

"Papa! Not fair! You can't come and steal Mama all to yourself!" The little girl pouted.

"Now, now, Ember, there's enough of mama to both you and your father. There's no need to fight."

"It's like Luce said, Ember. But you have spent quite the time with mama, now it's papa's turn."

 

A voice called for the little girl, Ember, and she got up excitedly and chased after it, leaving her parents alone. The couple got closer to each other and the woman started to question her husband.

 

"I know you love spending time with me, Natsu. But there's no need to tease Ember about it. You know she's as possessive as you can be overprotective sometimes."

"But Luceee, she makes such a cute face when she's pouting, I just can't resist it." Natsu whined. "But you know, there's something that bugs me in this story of yours."

"Which is...?"

"You never said that the dragon missed his girl so much that he couldn't stop thinking about her. And that he would never be able to forget her."

"And why is that?"

"Because once a dragon holds something dear to his heart, he never let it go."

"I wonder... what's your treasure, Natsu?"

"You, Happy, Ember. My family is my treasure. That one year was really hard to bear, you know? There wasn't a single day I didn't think or miss you and Happy didn't let that slide, that is, when he wasn't sulking with me."

"The same with me. I longed so much to be with you..."

"Who would have thought we would someday be in this position... You know, Luce, it's really more fun when we are together." Said Natsu, with a smile and while hugging Lucy tenderly.

And the couple stayed there in their little bubble of happiness, as didn't need to longer to be with each other anymore. After all, they were right there, side by side, and that was something they wouldn't let anything interfere or try to ruin. Because after a dragon made something his treasure, he would never let it go. And the same could be said about his family.

 


	2. Reunion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She was the first one to be cast to the sidelines.  
> They later were reunited there, just to get out and go to the front as a team, together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> About the story cronology, the first chapter is actually the last one in the timeline. And this one is the first in the timeline.
> 
> Funny fact about this, I had it half-written on my ficplaning notebook and just came up with the ending when I decided I could use it for Nalu week.
> 
> I hope you all enjoy it!

**Sidelines**

That wasn't how things were supposed to happen. After Tartarus, they were supposed to be together, yet he left without her. He came back a year later, but nothing could go back to what it once was.

The fight against Avatar broke the ice between them and by dragging her along, he brought their family, the guild, back together.

But then Alvarez happened and she was left in the sidelines. And when they least expected it, he went after Zeref, just to be put out of combat.

A desperate Happy holding him. Natsu had no idea that he was really close to death. An ironic thought considering he had said he didn't like fights to the death. Well, she did warn him about death flags...

Now, as he was in that bed, Lucy couldn't avoid the guilt eating away at her. If she had talked about them with him... about all the things that plagued her mind during the one year. She was still in the sidelines, but now she wasn't so sure if she wanted to go to the front. Even Natsu, as the powerhouse that he was, ended up in the sidelines of battle.

Happy left them alone after Lucy fell asleep by Natsu's bed. He could see that been cast to the sidelines took a tool on Lucy. But for now, he would leave them. He had something important to talk with the first master.

 

~|||~

 

When Natsu woke up, he was a bit lost. After some time, he realized he was at the guild infirmary, which meant Happy must had brought him back. He could see Lucy had been there, right by his side, but he was alone for the moment.

He could hear noises resembling a fight. He struggled a bit and stood up to his feet. He had a feeling his partners needed him. So, without thinking he threw himself in front of Lucy, taking head on the attack meant to hit her. Not this time. He wouldn't let them hurt her in front of his eyes again.

The smile on her face when he jumped in said everything. Too bad for the member of the Spriggan 12 facing them. Because their team was reunited again and this time they were fighting together. And with a defying smirk, telling his opponent to come on, he said the words that defined the state of spirit of their team.

"Come on, folk. I'm all fired up!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Day 3 will be posted as a separate story.


	3. Secrets

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Their relationship had now a weight on it that wasn't there before.  
> And that made them feel like they were talking to each other through blindfolded codes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And starting from this chapter, things will get a bit more serious. Maybe we can call this one the first adult steps?  
> I hope you enjoy reading!

**Code: Blindfold**

 

Even though they were reunited again, not everything was back to how it should be. Their relationship was mended to a degree, but sometimes, they couldn't help but feel like they were talking to each other through codes and that they were putting blindfolds on to hide things from the other. They tried to hide it, but the weight of the secrets was starting to wear down on them.

Lucy still felt like her choice back then when dealing with Alegria was still not the best choice. And so she tried to hide the guilt over breaking Aquarius key and the sadness that came with it.

Natsu still felt the pain of losing Igneel and now, there was the extra weight of the things Zeref had told him and he had no idea of how to deal with all that new information.

They had just defeated Jacob and were resting before joining the others to come up with a new plan of action. Natsu and Lucy were alone, talking and making strategies when the code they were using with each other was broken.

An innocent suggestion of using Aquarius key was that was needed for Lucy's blindfold to fall and show how terrible that year had been for her. Seeing Lucy sad and broken hurt Natsu way more than it seemed it had. So, he took the safe approach, asking for forgiveness.

 

"I'm sorry, Lucy. I didn't know. I didn't want to reopen the wound."

"I didn't have the courage to tell anyone... Even more because the others also had losses during our fight against Tartarus. And that one year alone... I was afraid of sharing the pain, the guilt."

"You aren't guilty of anything! You did what you did to save all of us, even if it was really painful! At least you were able to protect something important..."

 

Lucy looked at Natsu. He was so vulnerable, so different from the usual brave and reckless Natsu. By showing his vulnerable side only to her, he let his blindfold slip a little. She had shared her pain with him, so, it was time she helped him carry his burden too.

 

"Natsu, you can tell me what happened during Tartarus. I'm not going anywhere..."

"I searched for years Lucy. And when I finally found him, I saw Acnologia ripping his body apart..." Natsu talked in almost a whisper, and his body started shaking as the words fell from his lips. "I didn't get to even say a proper goodbye to Igneel. And there were so many things I wanted to tell him..."

 

The dragon slayer let his tears fall and Lucy stood there, just hugging him, showing she wasn't going anywhere. They had shared their pain and burden with each other and had decided to keep going forward together. That blindfolded code was not necessary anymore.

Side by side, they were going to move towards the future. But for now, staying in each other's arms was all they needed.


	4. Struggle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Facing the enemy with some hidden truths,  
> Drop by drop their revelation happens,  
> In the worst possible scenario.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had no idea of what to write for this day, then I saw a small comic in a theory and bam! this part came to be.  
> And here we start the drama! BTW, I'm sorry for posting late. My finals are approaching and I'm really stressed and running against time to be able to study all the stuff I have to study.  
> Ok, now back to business, I hope you all enjoy reading!

**Drops of truth**

 

When they had decided they were going to try to negotiate with August, they didn't expect Mest to go and mess up everything. If August was already scary enough when he was calm, after he lost his cool he was absolutely terrifying.

A strong blast of heat magic was thrown at them and Natsu jumped in front of Lucy, negating part of the magic and protecting her. The others weren't as lucky. They took the blast head on and now were out of combat.

August looked at the mages in front of him carefully. He had no doubt about it, out of the two mages left standing, the boy was exactly who he thought he was. After all, even if someone denied it, those two did have some similar traces.

The king of magic prepared a powerful spell, this time, with no heat involved. Natsu and Lucy tried to face the spell, but it was way too strong for them. The spell hit the duo and the dust covered the air, just like a smokescreen, hiding the effects of the magic.

When the dust settled down, the duo couldn't move. Their bodies felt heavy, as if they had used up all of their magic power. They struggled to move, trying to stand up against the king of magic, but it was a futile attempt.

 

"It's no good, Luce. I can't move my body."

"We can't give up now Natsu. We have to keep trying..." Lucy panted. Her body refused to move even the slightest inch, even talking was taking a great tool on her tired and hurt body.

 

August just watched the struggling mages before approaching Natsu's body. Out of the many things the Fairy Tail mages had seen and experienced, nothing had prepared them to what would happen there.

 

"It's a shame you chose to stand in the opposing side _, prince of Alvarez_. I wouldn't have to take this measures if you had stayed in his majesty's side. After all, your brother did order us not to kill you, but to bring you to him alive."

 

Lucy was taken back by August's words. It couldn't be true, could it? She looked at Natsu, just to see the dragon slayer trembling. And by seeing that, something inside of her snapped. She thought they had shared all the secrets that troubled them, but it seemed she was mistaken.

 

"Natsu, is... is what he said true? Could it be that you didn't share everything that was troubling your mind, even after we decided to face our demons together?!"

"Luce, I..." Natsu looked away. "...Even I hadn't accepted the things Zeref said to me. I wanted to get the book of END back first and then I was going to tell you everything. I didn't want to lie to you..."

"But you did lie anyway. You betrayed my trust again, Natsu!"

Seeing how things were getting way too heated up, August decided to intervene and interrupt the quarrel.

"I think that's enough. I take from this talk that there're quite the number of things you didn't tell you friend there. But it's too late now. I've decided. END shall awaken now."

 

Natsu looked more and more terrified as August got closer and closer to him. The warning bells started ringing inside Lucy's mind, with her gut feeling telling her something awful was about to happen.

August could see Natsu's pointless struggle and the dread stamped on the boy's face. He was tired of playing the fearsome foe, so he started the final act leading to END's awakening.

 

"You should stop with the pointless struggle, fairies. There's nothing you can do to stop END's awakening. Isn't that right, _prince of Alvarez?_ **_Or should I say END, Etherious Natsu Dragneel?"_** August said, while raising his staff and inflicting a fatal would on Natsu.

 

A gasp came out of Natsu's mouth, just as blood started to flow from the wound on his stomach. Lucy was totally paralyzed by the shocking scene. Just as Natsu spit some blood, her body started to tremble as the despair clouded her mind. And for an instant, a single high-pitched anguished cry calling for a friend was what could be heard there.


	5. Climax

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> That moment was the climax of their battle, the single moment in time where they stood in a crossroad.  
> The crossroad which leads to their future.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know it. I'm really late with the chapter this time. My life was a mess so it took me a while to organize everything I had to.  
> BTW, no need to worry about the chapter name, I went with the other meaning for climax, which is the highest conflict point in a story.  
> I hope you enjoy reading!

**Crossroads to the future**

 

Natsu was screaming like there was no tomorrow. The pain was the only thing going through his mind over and over. He didn't know, but little by little the seal on the book of END was being weakened.

Every time a spasm of pain went through his body, the seal reacted by weakening a bit more. All the ingredients were present. He was out of magic power, his life was at risk and the pain tearing at his insides made his instincts reach out for any possibility of survival.

Lucy tried to reach Natsu's body, but it didn't matter how much she tried and told her own body to move, it wouldn't bulge. A dark aura covered Natsu's body as he couldn't handle the pain. The transformation had started. Nothing could stop END's awakening now.

Zeref could sense the seal on the book of END coming undone and started to suspect August must have made a risky move. The emperor of Alvarez changed his route, moving in the direction he knew he would find August.

END wasn't really aware of his surroundings yet. He had a turbulent awakening and his head was still quite dizzy, but August looked disappointed. He was expecting END to go on a rampage as soon as he was awakened, yet, that wasn't happening.

Zeref finally arrived at the scene and saw the disappointed look in August's face. He knew quite well what might be happening, but still waited for his subordinate to ask.

 

"Emperor." August started reverently. "I have awakened the demon. But shouldn't he been bringing chaos upon the world?"

"Now, don't be impatient August. END is not like my other demons, after all, he used to be human." Started Zeref. "His demon side is still unaware of his surroundings, that's why he hasn't destroyed anything yet. But you should have used less violent methods. You could have ended up killing him by accident."

"I understand, Emperor. I shall not make this mistake again." Said August respectfully. "Maybe I should use something he cares deeply about..."

"Now you're starting to think, August." Commented Zeref.

 

END was still unstable. His eyes kept switching color, from dark green to scarlet red, which showed his human and demon side were still clashing. It didn't take long for his eyes to settle on the scarlet red, showing his demon side was in control.

And that was when he heard the king of magic threatening Lucy. She became a target and END's instincts screamed at him to protect her from the ones threatening her.

 

"Stay away from her." Hissed END.

"Is that normal, Emperor?" Asked August. "Or should I go after the girl anyway?"

"His human side is interfering on his instincts." Answered Zeref. "Get rid of the girl, she's an eyesore."

 

August started to move, ready to attack Lucy and hurt her. END could see the challenge coming from the king of magic. His curse power acted up and clashed with the magic cast by August.

It didn't take long for END's attack to triumph over August's and defeat the king of magic. Zeref just watched as one of his most powerful Spriggans fell with a wicked smile on his face. END was really the masterpiece he claimed he was.

END turned around and looked at Zeref with his scarlet irises showing a dangerous glint on them.

 

"FIGHT ME ZEREF!" Yelled the furious demon.

"Come." Answered Zeref while getting on a battle pose.

 

The two brothers started fighting with the clear intent of ending each other. Lucy could only stare at the duo, as she was slowly recovering her strength. It was crystal clear that END had the upper hand and that Zeref was struggling to keep up with the demon.

END was ready to put a period on that situation. Zeref was left without action, just waiting for the demon's next move. END raised his claw, but before he could pierce the Black Mage's body, he felt some familiar arms wrapping around him, hugging him from behind.

A desperate voice reached the demon's ears, stopping his actions at once.

 

"Don't do it Natsu. Please come back to me." Lucy begged in despair.

 

END stopped moving as his internal struggle restarted. He blinked, and his eyes were back to the usual dark green, showing that this time, his human side was in control, although he still had his demoniac appearance.

Lucy felt the posture change in END and realized Natsu was back. She let go of him and walked to the dark mage with determination stamped in her eyes and body language. Natsu took a step back because he could clearly see how angry Lucy was. And an angry Lucy is a scary Lucy.

The Celestial Mage looked at Zeref with the clear intent of beating him to a pulp. She grabbed his clothes and demanded answers.

 

"Tell now! How can I seal END's powers?!"

"As if I would tell you such information!" Retorted Zeref with a cocky smirk. A smirk that fell from his face as soon as he saw how serious Lucy was. "Fine, I'll tell you! Just don't hit me!"

 

Lucy let Zeref go as soon as he told her what she wanted to know. They started preparing the things needed while the Emperor was curled and shivering in a corner, mumbling something about scary blondes.

Everything was ready to begin. Natsu gave Lucy a signal that she could start and showed that he trusted her completely. The sealing spell was started and a bright light covered the place they were at. It just got brighter as time passed, until the shining was constant. Then it started to reduce, until it was gone.

And right where there once Natsu stood with a demoniac appearance, there were two things. A red key and, a now human Natsu. Lucy approached her partner and got the key on the floor, handing it to him. With a smile and their foreheads touching, Lucy said the words that they wanted to hear the most.

 

"The war is over. We did it. We won the war."


	6. The end

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The quest they started on summer was the final step towards the end.  
> And after the end, a new beginning and a brand new adventure.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And the last part of this story is here, I hope you all have a good time reading!

**Our Summertime quest**

 

Some time had passed since Ishgar claimed victory on the war against the Alvarez empire. People had reconstructed what had been damaged and life went on in the most normal way as it was possible.

Lucy had finally finished the preparations for the journey to search for Aquarius' new key. First, she planned to search in Ishgar and if she needed to, later she would search on Arakitasia.

The other guild members knew of Lucy's plan and respected her way too much to ask to go with her, so they just requested that she contacted them often during the search, to which she happily agreed.

But the biggest surprise she had was that Natsu decided (without even asking her first) that he would tag along on her quest because he wanted to keep the promise to never leave her alone again.

And the two mages and the blue exceed started to travel throughout Fiore and the continent of Ishgar. The guild would often have get togethers when a letter from the traveling mages arrived and some of the members would get a lacrima phone call once in a while. Sometimes, the guild had really funny reactions to the news.

Like when Happy told them Natsu and Lucy had started dating. The guild members had many different reactions. Some were commemorating, others were lamenting the bet they lost and others were wondering why Lucy had chosen Natsu of all people. After those news, Fairy Tail ended up partying for a whole week.

They searched the whole continent, but didn't find Aquarius' key. But instead of going back home and departing later, they decided to head directly to Arakitasia. Yet, they couldn't dump that information on the guild, as their friends and family would not agree with their decision.

And there was something else Natsu felt he needed to do before they started the new phase of their quest. They were back at Hargeon, the same place where their first journey together began.

It was night. Natsu and Lucy were standing in a place they could see the port, when Natsu got down in one knee and proposed to Lucy. She was speechless for the moment, with tears of happiness falling down her face. And when Natsu thought he had done something wrong, Lucy told him her answer.

 

"Yes! I'll marry you, Natsu."

 

A heartfelt smile adorned Natsu's face when he put the engagement ring on Lucy's hand and he showered her with kisses. They were touching foreheads when he told her he still had another gift.

Natsu took out a familiar key, a red key, giving it to Lucy.

 

"Natsu, this..." Started Lucy.

"Lucy, I want you to keep this key. I trust you with my life. There's no one else I would give this key to."

"Fine. I'll keep it." She said while cradling the key near her chest.

 

And after they sent the notice to the guild, the couple and the exceed headed to Arakitasia. And the first place they decided to visit on the new continent was the Alvarez empire.

The empire members weren't very happy in seeing them, after all, they weren't in good terms, although their relationship did improve after the war. They were received by one of the remaining Spriggan 12 and didn't take long for an annoyed Zeref to show up.

 

"What's so important that you had to call me Invel?"

"You have visitors, Emperor."

"Visitors? Who?" Demanded Zeref.

 

Before Invel could answer, Natsu caught his brother's attention and a long discussion started. In the end, Zeref gave in and allowed the trio to stay as guests. But it didn't take long for them to grow infatuated with the situation they were in. Especially Lucy. She had grown tired of the random women that would hit on Natsu whenever they had a chance. Even Natsu was annoyed by these random women.

So, they decided to get married and have a small ceremony, and maybe later, when they went back to Magnolia, they would have a real party.

During the time they spent at Alvarez, Lucy found some information on another kingdom, farther in the west portion of the continent of Arakitasia. A kingdom that was quite famous (because it wasn't one of the most known kingdoms) in dealing with healing and magical diseases.

Natsu, Lucy and Happy arrived at the kingdom and were amazed by the place. It was different from everything they had ever seen. The city they arrived at looked like a big traditional market, full of people negotiating all kinds of products.

They had just arrived when a commotion started.

 

"Get that brat!" Yelled a merchant.

 

They were just staring as random guards were trying to chase a young boy and merchants kept yelling for someone to catch him. The boy ended up tripping and fell down, with the guards soon reaching him.

The merchant who yelled first approached the boy and started to make demands.

 

"Give it to me, boy. You know that those cursed things are forbidden!"

"No! I found it, so it belongs to me!" The boy answered, while holding something tighter in his hands.

 

The sun was shining hard, as it was the middle of the day and a faint golden glow could be seen coming from the boy's hands. The merchant kept trying to take the item from the boy and Natsu decided to intervene before the boy got hurt.

 

"I was just wondering, did the boy steal this thing you want to get from him?"

"Who are you? This doesn't concern you!"

"I think you didn't understand the first time. Did the boy steal the item he's protecting?" Natsu asked in a serious tone.

The merchant gulped and trembling in fear answered:

"He didn't. But this thing he has is cursed! And we can't allow cursed items here!"

 

After Natsu made the merchant leave, the boy put the item away and offered to help him. He could see that the man who had helped him was not from that kingdom.

 

"I'm Asim. Thanks for helping me. If there's something I could do to repay you, you can tell."

"Luce, come here. I think I may have found a solution to our problem." Natsu called. When Lucy got closer to him, he started to explain the situation to her.

"So, you're Asim. I'm Lucy, he's my husband Natsu and the cat is Happy. We just arrived and don't know much about the place, so, could you show us around?" She asked with a smile.

"Sure." Answered Asim. "So, what brought you here?"

"We're searching for a magic item." Said Natsu. "But it would also be good to find a cure to a certain magic related disease."

"About the item, I don't think you will find what you're searching for. The people here believe that magic items are cursed... But I can help with the disease. I'll take you to the best healer in town!" Asim claimed excitedly.

 

Asim took them to the best healer in town, who said that he knew a cure for anti-ethernano tumors. It would take time to completely heal it, but Natsu and Lucy were ok with it.

It seemed that the healer was Asim's father, but the boy had no talent for healing. One day, Natsu was sitting around while Lucy played some kind of puzzle game when he decided to find out what was it that caused the commotion on the day they first arrived at the city.

 

"Hey Asim."

"Yes?"

"What was the thing that made those guards start chasing you on the day we met?"

"Ah, that? It was this." He answered while showing a golden key. A well-known golden key.

"That's..." Started Natsu. "Wow. Luce, I guess we finally found Aquarius' new key."

 

Asim just looked at them, feeling totally lost. So the magic item they were searching for was the key he had found? Maybe he should give them the key...

But before he could hand them the key, Lucy stopped him.

 

"Say Asim, have you tried summoning with the key?" She asked.

"Wait. Is this thing really magical? I tried many different ways but nothing worked."

"Try with water. If you can summon Aquarius, keep the key."

 

Asim did as he was told and Aquarius was summoned. Lucy and Aquarius had a quick chat and later, Lucy decided to teach Asim about his magic.

After their long journey, they finally had reached the end of it. From now on, they would start a new one. They had taken many steps to reach that place and now, the new steps they would take would start a new adventure. They would keep going on this new journey, step by step, until the very end of it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just love a happy and hopeful ending, that I couldn't avoid writing it.  
> Anyway, I'm quite found of the idea of Lucy getting an apprentice, so, I coudn't resist putting it on this story.  
> So, remember the first chapter, the voice who called little Ember? Guess who was it now.


End file.
